Test
by Fuzzhead
Summary: It's been two years since the Teen Titans defeated their worst adversary, Slade. With no evil masterminds to battle, the Titans start to think they're in for a long, overdue break - that is, until a mysterious being shows up at Titan Tower... COMPLETE
1. Prolouge

Prologue

The morning was calm and quite, not a single breeze disrupted the dark sky. Robin sat on the roof of Titan Tower looking at the faint outline of Jump City. He lay on his back, his head tilted at a slightly uncomfortable angle as he waited for the sun to rise. The door to the roof opened quietly, startling Robin out of his dazed daydreaming. He sat up and turned to see Starfire walking quietly across the heavy steel roof shields and sitting next to him on the edge of their home. He took a short moment to look at her then turned his attention back to the rising sun. Starfire put a small hand on Robins shoulder but didn't say a word. The opening of the roof door sounded again and Beastboy and Raven walked onto the deck, followed soon by Cyborg. No one said a word as they all stared at the blazing sunrise, knowing what today meant. It had been exactly two years exactly since they had brought down their deadliest enemy they had known as a team. The momentary silence that was suspended over everyone's head broke as Beastboy (getting slightly bored with the moment) turned to his friends:

"Breakfast". He said shortly, and then walked back to the roof door. He stood holding the door open as Cyborg nodded and the Teen Titans walked down to the kitchen and ate one of the best meals they had been able to eat for the last two years.

In another location, a glowing hooded figure stood, watching the rising sun. He soaked in the early morning rays. "Today", the figure said. 


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Cyborg and Beastboy stood in the center of the main living room in front of the large television screen, their voices steadily growing louder and louder.

"What do you mean by cheating?" Cyborg yelled, his robotic arm brandishing the game controller like a weapon.

"As in you win by breaking the rules, that's what!" Beastboy yelled back, glaring in Cyborgs flashing eyes. In order to do this feat, however, he had to stand on the arm of the couch.

"Tell me how, exactly, you can cheat at Mega Mutilating Monkeys! It is a video game! There are certain boundaries you just can't cross!"

The two continued to fight, watched by a mildly interested Raven. "This is the reason, I stay in my room", she said, then retreated to a quieter part of the living room to read her book. No matter how harsh she had sounded, she always thought they were somewhat more interesting when they were fighting over the video game then when they were actually playing it. After a few more fruitless moments of trying to read, Raven stood quietly and walked out of the room. 

Starfire too had been watching the fight, but turned back to the breakfast she had prepared herself. She had lived on Earth for quite a few years now, most of them spent living in Titans Tower, but she always failed to see what the interest was in a videogame. Didn't they see enough violence when they were fighting? Of course to ask this question straight to any of the boys' faces would cause uproar. Each of them would try to explain, but their explanations would wind up with her just shaking her head and walking out of the room. Starfire finished her meal, stood and decided to walk back to her sleeping quarters. 

As Starfire walked down the empty hallway to her room, she heard the faint pounding noise of the punching bag. She walked into the gym to see Robin standing at attack position and brutally pounding the punching bag. He stopped immediately as she entered the room.

"Why do you train this early in the morning, Robin?" She asked as she sat on the small wooden bench next to the mat.

"Habit, before we defeated Slade, I use to get up early each morning and come in here to train. Robin said, taking out a towel from the cabinet and sitting next to her. "I guess it really was more of a way to vent."

"But it has been two years since we saw Slade defeated, I truly doubt that there is a chance that he shall return after falling into lava." She pointed out. Robin smiled at her. She was right. Why was he in here pounding out a punching bag every morning? 

"Have you eaten?" He asked her. 

"Yes, there are more portions of my Garilian porridge in the refrigerator if you wish to partake of it!" She said beaming brightly at him.

Robin shook his head. "That's alright, I think that I'll just have some toast." He said as they both stood and walked out of the gym.

"I shall warn you, Cyborg and Beastboy are fighting again, I would enter with caution." She said, and then turned and walked down the hall to her room.

Robin smiled as he watched her slowly walk down to her room, then turned and walked to the kitchen. Right as he got to the kitchen, he looked over and saw Beastboy tackle Cyborg. Robin started making his toast then leaned against the table, watching his teammates wrestle on the living room floor. Right as Cyborg had gotten Beastboy into a headlock, the alarm went off. Raven and Starfire were there in an instant.

"Trouble!" Starfire cried as Cyborg ran to the main computer network.

"Downtown, robbers are stealing jewelry at Glen Oaks' place. Titans, Go!" Cyborg cried before running down the hall to the garage.

Raven and Starfire were the first to arrive. They burst in the large doors to find the criminals in a ready stance, their guns pointed and ready. Starfire quickly flew behind a display case while Raven put up a black shield as the bullets flew out of the gun. Starfire blasted one robber with her starbolts just as the rest of the Titans ran in the door.

Robin flipped over a display case and smacked the guns out of the three remaining robbers hands. Beastboy morphed into a constrictor and laced himself quickly around one of the startled villains while Robin tied up the last two with rope from his utility belt. When that was done, he turned to the robber Beastboy had caught and tied him up. Cyborg checked behind each case to make sure no hidden explosives were there and then ran to the back where he found the manager bound and gagged.

As the police pulled the robbers into the cop cars, the Titans turned to each other.

"Is it just me or are the villains getting a little easier to beat?" Beastboy asked.

"That was pretty easy. I don't know, maybe we're due for a vacation." Cyborg said, smiling. "No evil masterminds trying to kill us right now, right?"

Robin shrugged. "We always seem to think that right as a new instigator comes to town. We're probably jinxing the hell out of this right now." The Titans laughed and started on their way back to Titan Tower. As they all got into the T-Car, the hooded figure emerged from a darkened alley. It focused on the T-Car and vanished suddenly into thin air. 


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

The rest of the day had been uneventful if you don't count Cyborg locking Beastboy into the bathroom and Starfire trying to bake a cake. That night they had all sat up to watch a movie and were now getting ready to go to bed.

"Man, that movie was great!" Beastboy said, finishing off the last few handfuls of popcorn.

"I too found it enjoyable." Starfire said, standing and yawning loudly.

"Good night ya'll," Cyborg said suddenly, standing and typing in the lock down for the night. "I gotta get some sleep." The rest of the Titans agreed and walked to their rooms.

Beastboy got into his room and tripped over a pile of clothes he had left there that morning. He thrust them out of the way and dragged himself to his bed. He kicked off his shoes and fell onto his bed, falling asleep instantly. As Beastboy turned over in his sleep, a shadow fell over his bed. 

"Dissendium Minatare," it whispered.

In his sleep, Beastboy suddenly jerked.

Raven had taken off her cloak and was pulling the sheets back on her bed. She turned on a nearby lamp and pulled a book off of one of the shelves towering on either side of her bed. She pulled the covers over her knees and opened the book to where she had last been. Out of the corner of her eye, Raven saw a shadow move. She turned her head suddenly.

"Dissendium Minatare," The shadow whispered and Raven suddenly felt dazed, and fell to the floor of her bedroom.

Cyborg closed the door to his room and lay down on his charging pad. Right as he grabbed the charging coil from out of the computer hatch, his door opened. 

"What . . ." was all Cyborg managed to get out before the shadow whispered a spell, and Cyborgs head fell against his pillow.

Starfire was probably the only one of the Titans that preferred not to sleep in her gear. She pulled a pair of white sweatpants from out of her drawer and a purple top. She paced over to her window and leaned against the glass. The night was lit up with a million stars. She smiled at the brightly lit sky and sat on the window ledge. 

Suddenly, Starfire felt a presence in her room. She snapped her head around and saw a shadow fall across her carpet.

"Dissendium Minatare," It whispered and Starfire fell off the window ledge and lay on her stomach.

Robin pulled off his cape and threw it over the arm of his chair. He lay down on his mattress and pulled the covers up to his chin. Just as he had started to nod off, a figure appeared by his bed. He turned, expecting to see Starfire, and gasped.

"Who are . . . "

"Dissendium Minatare!" The figure whispered and Robin felt his head grow fuzzy and he fell onto his mattress. 


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Beastboy-

'Where am I?'

Beastboy was lying on a hard wooden floor. He turned and pulled himself off the surface and looked around him.

"No…" he murmured. 

He was in a cage. Thick metal bars surrounded him on every side and a wooden ceiling was above him. 

'Where am I?' He thought. 'Where's the others? Why am I in this cage?'

All of a sudden, groups of people were around the cage. They all held long sticks and were indistinguishable from each other.

"Do a trick, freak!" One yelled from the back. The crowd all agreed and started to put their sticks through the bars and poke Beastboy.

"No, hey, STOP! Quit doing that!" He yelled, trying desperately to push the sticks away. 

"Trick, trick, trick, trick," The crowd chanted sinisterly. Feeling he had no choice, Beastboy morphed into a small dog. The crowd laughed and continued to poke him with the poles. They continued to chant.

Beastboy morphed into a tiger, an anteater, and a cat before he turned back into his normal self and lay on the wooden floor, his hands over his head.

Raven-

A cold harsh breeze was flying into Ravens face. She squinted and gasped at the cold air and slowly opened her eyes. She was standing, overlooking a dry and desolate desert. She knew where she was; this was her home planet, Azerath. 

She turned and looked around her. How could she of gotten here? Why was she back here? She had sworn to herself that she would never return. Earth was her home now.

Abruptly, she felt large footsteps shake the earth. She turned back to the cliff and there stood a giant demon. His nostrils poured out large puffs of steam and his four eyes gleamed an evil red. He smiled sinisterly.

"You!" He cried out, his voice a harsh whisper.

"No, you can't be real!" Raven cried, moving her feet quickly away from the monster. "No!" 

The demon picked up and one large foot and moved it towards her. He leaned down so they were almost face-to-face and glared inwardly.

"Father . . ." She said before turning and bolting in the opposite direction.

Cyborg-

Cyborg was lying on the ground. His eye was closed but he could feel and smell the grass, he could feel the sun shining down on his face. He opened his eye and he breathed. He was in a football stadium, in fact the one that he use to play in before the accident that had changed his life.

He looked around fondly, and heard several voices behind him. He turned to see his high school football team charging onto the grass and . . . straight at him! He moved quickly to his side just in time. The football players all turned around and moved in towards him.

"Whoa, guys, what are you doing?" He cried, moving backwards. 

"Who let the freak onto the field?" Nichols, the quarterback, cried out. 

"What's going on?" Cyborg asked, growing steadily more frightened.

"Nothing much," His friend Charlie Valence, said, his hands holding a long metal pipe. "Just a little bit of tag team." He said as he swung the pole back.

Starfire-

Starfire could smell damp earth and a sickening smell of something rotting. She opened her eyes only to be met by darkness. She lit a green flame in her hand and held it high above her head. She was in a cave, a long narrow passage went from her right to her left and a wooden door was visible above her.

"No . . ." she whispered, turning in every which way.

She recognized where she was. This was the burial cave of her people on Tamaran. She flew to the door above her and rammed against it with her shoulder but it didn't budge. 

"Please no!" She cried, punching the hard wood with her fist. She had been afraid of these burial chambers since she was a small child. The adults often told stories of monsters and the living dead that lived in the chambers so the children would stay away. Starfire suddenly felt her energy being drained, she gasped as the green light in her hand went out, and she fell to the floor.

But they were just stories, right?

Robin-

Robin was high above the ground, holding onto a long wooden pole and a rope. He was back in the circus, where he had grown up. His parents, his brother and himself had been in a trapeze act before . . .

Robin looked across the ropes to three figures on the brightly colored trapeze. They were swinging simply back and forth. Suddenly a shot rang out and the three figures fell. 

Robin cried out as he saw his family fall to the ground for a second time.

Suddenly, the ropes around the wooden platform he was on fell away and he was trapped. He looked helplessly around and cried out in anger.

What was going on? 


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

The hooded man looked into the large crystal ball to check in on the state of each Titan. He felt a sudden dread as he saw each Titan failing at the task at hand.

'No, they're our only hope . . .'

Beastboy-

He laid on the ground, his hands over his head and his knees brought close to his chest; the people still chanting unendingly.

"Please! Stop!" He cried out. What was going on? How had he gotten here? 

'That doesn't matter!' He thought to himself. 'Figure a way to get out of here!'

He looked all around him. The face-less people encircled the cage; there was no open path. And there's so many of them . . .

He suddenly stood and morphed into a T-Rex making the cage around him burst with his size. The people around the cage scattered. He roared loudly and suddenly felt the ground fall from his feet. He morphed back and tumbled down a dark pit and landed and a hard surface.

Raven-

She was hiding behind a large boulder, shaking as she felt the threatening footsteps tremble the earth. She could not understand how she had gotten here. But she needed to figure a way out of here. 

She stood and flew to the top of the boulder, searching helplessly for some sort of escape.

"Raven . . ." An evil voiced cried out far behind her. She turned to see her father standing a hundred feet away in front of a large stone door. 

'An exit?' She asked herself. Forgetting everything else, she formed the large magical bonds around her hands and shot straight at her father.

She ducked as he sent a colossal fist her way. She looked on the ground for some sort of weapon. Seeing the numerous rocks, she lifted them with her bonds and threw a particularly large one right at Trigons face. He cried out in anger and shot a red blast from his hands at her.

She got up from the hard earth and picked up another large boulder. This time, when it hit him, he was sent flying back away from the door. She quickly fled through the door that seemingly disappeared behind her, and came face to face with a cliff.

Cyborg-

The five football players all were leering over Cyborgs, throwing kicks and punches. He grunted as on swift kick came in to his side.

"What's wrong Stone?" Nichols yelled out. "Come on you freak, show me what you got!"

Valence and the others snickered and backed away, leaving a battered Cyborg lying on the ground.

'This isn't real,' Cyborg thought as he rolled onto his back. "Back off," He whispered angrily.

Cyborg got to his feet and stood impressively before them. 

"What did you say, freak?" Nichols asked. He grabbed the metal pipe from Valence and swung it back, aim straight at Cyborgs face.

Just as the pipe was about to hit, Cyborg caught it and bent it in half. He pulled out his gun arm and pointed it at his old friends. "I said, back off." He shot one hard blast and suddenly felt himself falling backwards. He fell down a deep tunnel and landed hard on the ground.

Starfire-

Starfire was sitting in a fetal position, rocking back and forth. She dared not open her eyes. Every so often she would hear a soft patting noise, as if someone was walking off in the distance, but then it would stop and go back to the deafening silence. 

"This cannot be," she said aloud, her voice echoing off the sodden walls. She wrapped her hands around herself and shivered. Her pajamas were letting every draft of air through, freezing her skin. 

A draft . . .

'If there is a draft, then there must be a way for it to enter,' She thought. She opened her eyes and faintly made out the cobblestone path that led to the tombs. The draft was coming from that direction…

She got to her bare feet and shakily started walking towards the tombs; the pit-pat noise of her feet reverberating through the thick silence. When the first tombstone in the wall came into view, she slowed down. 

'No, there is no going back!' She scolded herself. 'You must find an exit!' She picked up the pace again and entered the graveyard. 

A whispering sound came from every which direction, but she continued walking. 

'There is nothing…' She told herself, the whispering seeming to get louder. 

'There is nothing!' The whispering seemed to be right behind her now.

"THERE IS NOTHING!" She cried out finally, breaking into a run. An entrance to another cave was evident and she entered it quickly, the doorway fading out behind her as she collapsed to the ground.

Robin-

The platform creaked wearily as Robin sat atop it, not daring to move. He had never truly had to face his fear of heights. Possibly, it was not a fear of heights, simply just falling from them. He leaned down and looked at the circus floor below, looking at the crumpled bodies of his family. A single tear fell from his masked eye and fell to the ring beneath him. 

'Why am I here,' He asked himself. 'Is this a dream? Can I wake up at any minute?' He pinched himself but the shock of pain seemingly did nothing. He pulled himself away from the edge and sat in the middle of the wooden dais.

'I need to get out of here.' He thought determinedly. The ropes had all fallen, so there was no way to swing down. He looked again down to the ground. He would have to jump. 

Robin stood unsteadily on the edge of the dais, and then plunged off the edge. He saw the ground draw nearer but as he was about to hit, a dark tunnel appeared below him and he went spiraling down into the dark. Finally he hit hard rock and everything went black. 


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

Beastboy was the first to arrive in the dirt pit. He stood and rubbed the back of his neck. What was going on? Where were the others? As if on cue, a dark hole suddenly appeared to his right and Raven came crashing in. 

"Are you okay?" He asked, helping her up. She was shaking and looked scared. She pulled her hood over her face and merely nodded.

"Where are the others?" She asked. 

"I don't know I just got here. I don't know what's going on, but we have to get out of here. Like, now."

Suddenly, a screaming form appeared above their heads and Cyborg came crashing to the hard rock ground. He grunted as he landed and slowly sat up.

"Man, that sucked. Where the hell are we?" He asked. He looked at them. They looked just as scared as he felt. A dark hole appeared to his left and Starfire ran into the pit, and fell to the ground.

"No, leave!" She said, she pulled her hands over her head and rocked back and forth.

"Starfire!" Cyborg said, quickly running over and kneeling. "Hey Star, it's okay." She looked up with tears in her eyes. She looked around and tried to calm her breathing. 

"Are you alright?" Raven asked. 

"No, we must leave. We must leave now!" 

"I don't think we can." Beastboy said. Suddenly another figure fell from the darkness above. 

Robin fell to the floor and grunted. His heart hammering madly in his chest he looked up. Four pairs of worried eyes looked back.

"Hey man, you alright?" Beastboy asked. Robin sat up and looked around.

"Yeah, fine." He said rubbing his shoulder. "Where are we?"

"Beats me. I was just starting to fall asleep when this guy came into my room…" Cyborg started.

"Yes, a strange man with a dark cloak over his head." Starfire said quietly.

"Yeah, and he said a spell." Raven said, remembering. "Whoever it was must have sent us here."

"Not straight here though. I was somewhere else before I ended up here." Robin said, looking around at his teammates.

"As was I," Starfire said, still shaking slightly. 

"Me too," Beastboy said, shuddering at the thought. " I was in a cage, there were these people standing all around with long poles…"

"I was on my old football will with all my old…friends," Cyborg said, stressing the last word slightly.

"I was back on Azerath, my father was there…" Raven said, then quickly stopped. 

"I was…" Starfire started but then put her head in her hands and stopped talking. Robin walked over and put an arm around her shoulders. 

"I was at the old circus I performed in with my family. I saw them, them," He stammered and cut off. "We need to figure out what's going on!" They all lapsed into silence.

"It sounds as if we all went to places where we had bad experiences as a kid." Raven said suddenly. She was more thinking of her experience, as she didn't know what the others had really gone through.

"I've never been put in a cage and jabbed at with sticks!" Beastboy said heatedly.

"I had never been in the burial tombs of my home planet, it was forbidden." Starfire said quietly. "It appears as if we experienced things we were afraid of. Things we hoped would never happen or never happen again." 

"Yeah, I am afraid of being caged like some wild animal." Beastboy said sheepishly.

"I'm afraid of being rejected by people I know because of the way I look." Cyborg admitted.

"I'm afraid of heights. And watching my family fall from them." Robin said testily.

"Home planet issues." Raven muttered.

"It is the same for me." Starfire said. They all went quiet at these new revelations that they had discovered about each other; each one avoiding the other's eyes. "It sounds like," Starfire began. "That we are being put to some type of te-"

But before she had finished, a huge hole in the ground opened and swallowed her whole. The others jumped to their feet, just in time to be sucked into holes of their own. 


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

Cyborg-

Cyborg was in a large medical lab. He looked up at the ceiling he had just been dropped through and then studied his surroundings. All around him were microscopes, computers, bottled chemicals-all the things you'd find in a research room. A sudden sound made Cyborg draw his cannon and take aim at the opening door to his right. As the doors opened, a gray-haired man stepped into the room.

"Cyborg, I've been waiting a long time to see you," The man stated, taking the clipboard in his hand and setting it on a table.

"Really," Cyborg said gruffly, still taking aim. "How about telling me where I am and where my crew is."

"So many demands, you've got to learn to lay back and take it easy." The man said airily. Eyeing the outstretched arm warily, he added, "Now is there really any need for that? Have I showed the smallest hint of a threat?" 

"You're kidnapped me and my friends to some god-forsaken fun house, yeah I consider you a threat." He charged up the cannon threateningly and glared harder. "Now I'm not going to ask again. Where. Are. My. Friends."

The man sighed and walked over to a counter slowly. "They're fine. You will see them shortly. Now on to business."

The man pulled a chart from the wall and held it in front of his eyes. "You are a rare being, Cyborg. Quite the puzzle. When I first went through and investigated into… well, never mind about that. I have a proposition for you." The gray-haired man turned to a control panel and pulled a large toggle. From the floor a large tank ascended slowly, with a form in the center. Forgetting about being cautious, Cyborg put down his cannon arm and walked forward entranced. 

"My God," He breathed, as he examined the floating body. "It's me!"

Raven-

Raven fell with a thud on the stone path of a large circular dais. She stood quickly and got in a ready stance as a hooded figure walked up the cold glowing steps. 

"Raven, it's an honor." The hooded figure alleged. A gloved hand swooped the large hood off to reveal a gray haired man, with piercing blue eyes and a small, stretched mouth. 

"Who are you?" Raven demanded. She paced uncertainly on her feet, never taking her eyes off the mysterious man.

"All business, it was the same with the others too-"

"Where are they?" Raven interjected harshly.

"Now be polite and let me have my small say. My, I do have one thing to say about the Teen Titans, you certainly do not mosey around with small talk and silly wisecracks (much like others I have encountered)." The gray-haired man had started to pace aimlessly back-and-forth across the glowing platform. 

"Now that you've had you say, allow me to make mine," Raven said, allowing a dramatic pause to rise. "Is this your doing? Are you forcing us to face these realities where our worst fears come true?"

"My, my; aren't we the thinker. All will be revealed in short time. I can see that there really is point in trying to start up a conversation. I say, it really is too bad, you seem such a deep conversationalist." He added smartly, seeing Raven shift unhappily on her feet. "Now, tell me if this is correct, you base your powers off of your emotions correct? Much like your friend Starfire?"

Raven started. How could he know that?

"I will take your dramatic pause as a yes. I must also assume that not being able to express your emotions is a challenge." He added tilting his head to the side and studying her.

Without truly thinking about it, Raven nodded wordlessly.

"What would you do if I could give you a way to show through your 'monotonous' outlook? To finally be able to smile without causing an object to explode? To run through a field of flowers merrily or shed several tears in despair. What would you do with this sort of power? What would you do with the power to show a certain green friend how you truly feel?" The gray-haired man demanded.

A cold, clammy feeling came over Raven. "What exactly are we talking about here?"

Robin-

The familiar smell of baking awoke Robin out of the concussion he had received upon landing. He opened his eyes and rubbed his aching head. He was in a living room, a kitchen visible on the other side of the hall. He stared around in amazement. 

"Hello?" Robin called out uncertainly. 

"Oh you're up!" A mans voice called from behind him. Robin swung skillfully around to be face to face with a gray-haired man wearing a floral apron, donning two oven mitts and holding a sheet of cookies. "Always have been my favorite," The man stated, looking fondly at the steaming chocolates. "Chocolate chip, nothing better in the world. Care for one?" He offered, holding the cookie sheet out in a friendly manner. 

"Where am I?" Robin demanded. Seeing the man acting so friendly struck him odd, but did not lower his defenses a bit.

"A safe place, where no one can harm you."

"Really."

"Really. It's called a home. That's what you long for isn't it Robin. A home."

Of all the things the strange man could have said, that was certainly not was Robin was expecting. Robin composed himself again. He had been given no reason to trust this odd man. "I have a home. It's called Titan Tower."

"Ah, I see what you are now Robin. Here I thought you would be my most complex specimen yet. Ah, no matter. I have a small proposal you might be interested in my lad."

"I'm not interested in any scheme you have-"

"Why don't you tell that to them?" The gray-haired man said, pointing just behind Robin. 

Robin slowly turned, to face three figures standing in the doorway. Robin let out a cry of surprise and recoiled back. 'No, this can't be!" Robin thought wildly. And he watched in wonder as the three figures of his long dead family stepped into the well-lit room, their smiles plastered happily.

Beastboy-

Beastboy awoke on the edge of a busy street corner. He lifted himself off the ground and stared wildly around him. 

"Where am I?" He asked quietly. 

"Well apparently," A man with an open newspaper exclaimed. "At the bus stop at the corner of Main and South." The man said, lowering his newspaper to reveal a graying man. He pointed up at the street sign to prove his point. 

"Who are you?" Beastboy asked. 

"My boy, you're so flustered, you've barely looked around you. Go ahead, take it all in, I'll wait." 

Beastboy raised one inquisitive eyebrow and took a look at the street around him. Brick building. Another brick building. A small grocery store. A McDonalds. A vegetarian market.

"Sweet!" Beastboy exclaimed, staring at the tofu filled windows at the front of the vegan market. 

"Not that, Beastboy! Look at the people. Look at their faces."

Beastboy folded his arms and looked boringly around him until he found the face of the person closest to him.

The man was green.

He looked into the face of an older woman. It was green. Everyone on the bustling street corner held the same facial aspects as his own. 

"What's going on? 

"Isn't this what you're always wished for?" The gray-haired man cried reverberatingly, his voice filling the entire street. "Not for you to change. Not for the chance to become more human. No, but for the world to change to be like you!" Suddenly the people vanished.

Beastboy started at the disappearance of the people and looked back around at the mysterious man.

"Would you like a chance to live in a world like that? Not to be questioned on what you are, but truly who you are?"

Beastboy thought for a second. "What do I have to do?"

Starfire-

Starfire was in a strange place. Around her there were many assortments of flowers and an intricately cut stonewall. She looked around her in awe when a sudden patting on stone woke her from her thoughts.

"Starfire, I assume?" A voice from behind her inquired. Starfire turned to see a graying man walking up the stone steps. 

"Who are you?" Starfire asked inquisitively. The old man before her smiled oddly.

"I knew you'd be different from your compatriots. They were very cautious and demanding when I met with them. Having a brave yet welcoming disposition is most refreshing." 

"Am I wrong in doing this?" Starfire inquired. "Are you the being that has brought us here?"

"I find I cannot answer your question."

"Can you tell me why we are here?"

"Now that would ruin my purpose." He said pacing slowly closer. "I have indeed inspected the lives of your highly remarkable team, each and every one. I found similarities in all of you but, a remarkable difference all together."

Starfire listened closely to his words but could not make an understanding of them. "What do you mean?"

The gray man searched her face for a brief second then turned away. "I find that in order to disclose that information I must tell you part of my plan." He turned back around. "You see, dear, I have been investigating into your lives to find certain aspects I need. The ones I am using now include your hearts deepest desires. In each of you I found some desire. All except for you."

Starfire started. "What do you mean by this?"

"In you I have found no lust, no deep desire. You have wishes of course, but you have no mind-altering desires that change the way you think and feel. You, my dear, put people before yourself and find true deep pleasure in doing this."

Starfire continued to stare oddly at the man. "I do not understand your words." 

"You see, my dear, I have another plan for you." The gray-man said, walking slowly towards her. 


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

Cyborg-

"How did you do this?" Cyborg asked, pressing his mechanical hands against the smooth glass. He examined the floating replica of his human body with awe.

"Simply cloned the genes in your body to make a new form. As simple as that. Does it suit you?" The gray-man asked, looking somewhat distracted.

Cyborg didn't answer. Thoughts raced through his mind over and over. Was this a chance to become all-human again? To finally be accepted? What could the man want in return?

"My scientists here have been given okay to transpose you into your new likeness. It would be as simple as switching a plant into a new pot." The gray-man said. He still held a distracted face, as though he were not happy with the way things were going. 

"You'd just do this? Not ask for anything in return?" Cyborg said, turning from the tank to face the man.

"Well, not exactly. You see, that's the catch. In order to obtain you new body, you must do something." The man said, walking again to the control panel. He pulled a second toggle, which lowered a large tank from the ceiling. A second tank lowered to reveal a small child. The boy looked frighteningly around him and began to cry. "You see; a sacrifice is to be made. If I were to give you this gift, you must allow this human to die."

Raven-

"Allow this child to die?" Raven asked, making sure she had understood the statement. 

"Yes. Do nothing, just allow him to die." The gray-man replied.

Robin-

"I can't do that." Robin said, still staring wishfully at his family. 

"Robin, think about it. The chance to have a home and the family that was so brutally torn from you. All I want in exchange is for you to let this one small child die."

Beastboy-

"I can't do that." Beastboy said finally. He stared fixedly at the gray-man.

"You will give up this perfect life for the life of another then?" The gray-man said, losing the distracted face and smiling oddly.

All-

"Yes." And as each one of them did so, they again fell backwards and found themselves in the dirt pit.

The four of them pulled themselves off the ground and were silent for several minutes.

"I don't understand any of this!" Robin yelled angrily punching his fist to the ground. 

"I don't think were are meant to just yet." Raven said.

"This sent me to a place were everyone was green. Just like me." Beastboy said, staring at his hands.

"He offered me my human body. A chance to be like everyone else." Cyborg said, turning towards a wall and leaning one arm against it.

"I know the man behind this. A graying man, blue eyes?" Raven asked. The others nodded. "He offered me a chance to be able to feel." Then she pulled her hood up and turned away.

"He brought my parents back. I-I saw them." Robin said. There were several seconds of silence before anyone realized that something was wrong.

"Where's Starfire?" Robin demanded, standing up and turning in every which way. They all got up, worried about their lost friend. 

All of a sudden, the floor of the cave began to descend. They found themselves in an underground cave, stalagmites and stalactites hanging from the ceiling. There in the center of the cavern was a round rock pedestal and the gray-man standing there patiently.

"Congratulations, you passed." He said as the stage carrying the four Titans hit the ground gently.

"Where's Starfire?" Raven demanded. Each one of them had pulled into their fighting stances and stood facing the man. 

"Allow me to explain," The man said. He lifted and hand and levited the rock they were on farther away from him. Now at roughly a 40-foot spacing, the man continued. 

"You see, I have put you to a test, which you have almost passed-"

"What was the test for?" Robin demanded.

"I needed to find the right group of heroes. Ones that were brave enough to face their fears and selfless enough to give up their hearts greatest desire. You have passed these tests with flying colors, I commend you." The man said, clapping his hands airily. "I have been searching for over 50 years for a group of marvelous young champions such as yourself. Others have been put to the test but none yet have won so brilliantly as you." 

The man allowed the Titans time to absorb this information before continuing. "However, there is one more test before I can reveal to you all that is about to come." He raised one thin hand to the top of the cave that lowered a small being. Then he used his other hand to point to the space between him and the Titans, which opened up a tunnel full of fire. The body being lowered from the ceiling was now clear enough to make out a purple shirt with white pants and flaming red hair…

"You must watch this teammate die." He said letting the hand supporting Starfire fall to his side. 


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

There was no chance to react. As if in slow motion, Robin, Beastboy, Raven, and Cyborg saw Starfire begin to fall. She had arched her back gracefully and turned her head just a bit to smile sadly at her friends before she fell into the lake of fire.

No one could move. No one spoke. Everything just stood still in that moment.

"No!" Robin cried out as he ran towards the flames. But, before he could get close enough to try to save her, the tunnel closed up and Starfire was gone.

"You son of a bitch." Cyborg said. Anger spread over all their faces. 

"Titans Go!" Robin yelled. Trying his best to run before the other Titans so he could have the first swing…

But before they had gotten to the gray-man, a clear barrier barred them from coming too close.

"You must understand-" The man began.

"Bring her back!" Raven yelled. She tried her best to break the wall, but with no luck. 

"Listen!" The man yelled, silencing all of them. They all breathed heavily as they angrily watch the man get closer. "You must listen. Starfire is not gone."

The other Titans stared oddly at the man as he slowly lowered the barrier. 

"Where is she?" Beastboy demanded.

"She is right here," A familiar voice from behind them said. They all turned in time to see Starfire fly from the dark abyss below and land next to them. They all ran to her and embraced briefly. 

"Are you alright?" Robin demanded worriedly.

"I am fine Robin," Starfire said, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"Cyborg?"

"Scanners say it's her. And scanners say she alright." Cyborg said, picking Starfire up and wrapping her in a bear hug.

Robin turned back to the gray man and began to approach him furiously. Starfire turned to see him and ran to block his way.

"No Robin, you must listen." She said, standing next to the gray man.

"I will be brief yet thorough. My time on this world grows short." The man said. The Titans all drew cautiously closer and listened. "There is an opponent coming that is stronger then anything you will ever face. Like I said, I have been searching for a long time for a hero that could take on such a foe. Half a century I have searched. Many different individuals have come close to being the best but they all failed my tests. I have tested thousands. You don't understand how special your group truly is. You are the only ones to have ever passed. My tests were to find the right characteristics that I needed. I gave you a test to make you face your darkest fears, for that is what you may be faced with. I gave you a test for you to deny yourself your hearts deepest desire for the preservation of a human life. This creature works in many ways; bribery may or may not be one of them. But, to be truly ready is to be prepared for things you never thought you would face. Then I gave you the final test. You had to watch your teammate; a friend, sister, a…" He gave a warm look towards Robin. "…And other things, I made you watch her die. This being will not listen for mercy. It takes great pleasure in watching the pain in others. I had to make sure you were prepared for anything."

The Teen Titans glanced at each other. Were they ready as a team for such a foe? Was he to leave them with only this information?

"I must leave. My time on this planet is very limited. I must leave. " He turned and lifted his hand. A large carrying craft of alien technology emerged from the floor and an opening unfastened in the ceiling of the cave. "But," He said turning back around. "I will leave you with this as well." 

The gray man raised his hand and a horrific visualization occurred in their minds. When each one of them came to, they were back in their beds at Titan Tower. 


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Beastboy and Cyborg sat on the couch wrestling over the best controller as Raven finally came out of her room. 

'Even after all that we've been through during the night,' She thought to herself. 'They still play that stupid game.'

She went to the cabinet in the kitchen and pulled out a small pouch of her tea and began to make her breakfast. 

Up on the roof, Starfire sat alone; holding her knees trying to keep the early morning cold away from her skin. As something was draped over her shoulders, she turned suddenly to see Robin putting his cape around her. 

"Thank you," She said, and then turned back to the rising sun. Robin sat next to her. "We've been through a lot during the night."

"Yeah," Robin said. He tried to figure out a way to tell her everything he was feeling. From seeing his family die for the second time, to watching her fall to a fiery grave. No words came to mind. 

"The strange man said that I was unlike the rest of you, because I lack a deep desire." Starfire said. "I do not know if this is a good thing or a bad thing."

Robin sat staring at the sunrise, still not knowing what to say. Instead, he put one strong arm around her and leaned his head against hers assuringly. 

"Do you believe we will be ready for this adversary, Robin?" Starfire asked. She waited patiently for his answer.

"I think that no matter what, the Teen Titans will always be here to fight when we're needed." Robin said, hoping that this would put her mind to rest. 

A sudden banging noise brought the three other Titans to the roof. Forgetting about their intimate position, Starfire and Robin smiled as the three other Titans sat next to them. Cyborg, Raven and Beastboy smiled back. 

"Bring it on," Robin whispered fiercely as the sun made its full appearance over the buildings of Jump City. 


	11. The Vision

The vision

A creature standing well over 20 feet tall stood on a dark hilltop. Several large muscular arms protruded from the built torso and the body of a horse lay on the bottom half. A gleaming sword was apparent in each hand as well as protective armor long each arm and leg. The face of the creature was a shredded mass of flesh and darkness, all but two apparent yellow eyes. Along his fang filled mouth was a smear of red oozing blood. He leaned his head back and let out a dry, desolate yell that brought alien beasts to his side. The ground shook as the creatures all ran and collided with Jump City.

Yes, this is the end of this installment of Teen Titans. I don't want to finish it; I want someone else to write what happens. I've left it open; do what you want with the next part of the story. 


End file.
